All eyes on Portugal

Abstract

From the day of the coup in April 1974 until the dénouement of the revolution in November 1975, Portugal was never long out of international consciousness. It excited a wider world press over those nineteen months than any other running European story. It aroused first a welcome from America and Western Europe, that under such a safe conservative figure as Spinola Portugal had thrown off the mantle of dictatorship, then apprehension about the direction events were taking after Spinola was overthrown. And it attracted hordes of commentators, Intelligence officers, interested political observers and young revolutionaries to observe at first-hand Europe’s first real revolution since the war.